ROMEO

I was surprised when I heard Feo say his last name. I know there are many different Valentinos that are not related to me. But it's a little weird that we have the same surname. The weirder thing was we were both Roman demigods. We both came from Camp Jupiter. And both our mothers are war goddesses.

We followed him inside his restaurant and to his upstairs apartment. He gave us one ambrosia biscotti that the three of us shared and three small glasses of nectar. He was also bandaging Oliver's wounds. We didn't realize that Oliver was badly injured.

"Who are you kids anyway?" Feo asked. "It's pretty obvious that the two of you are demigods and you are definitely a faun."

"I'm actually a satyr." said Oliver. "If I was a faun I wouldn't be on this quest."

Then he went to sleep on the bed he was put on.

"Well that is true." Feo said. "And you young lady?"

"I'm Desiree Jones, daughter of Aphrodite." She said hesitating to say either Aphrodite or Venus. I can guess why she was hesitating. Feo wasn't used to the idea that the Greek and the Romans could work together. She was just careful what to say but she stuck with her heritage.

"You're Greek." Feo said. "Well no need to worry. I don't mind where a demigod comes from. We're technically all the same. Back when I was younger, about fifteen, when I was already a legionnaire, I had a few camp friends who lived in the same area I used to live in on the other side of the city. My family already moved to this part of the city and this restaurant was already a huge success. So my friends wanted to visit me and taste our pizza. The day they visited, we accidentally ran into a Greek demigod and then my friends started a fist fight with him but I didn't get involved. Since it was three against one, excluding me, the boy didn't stand a chance. My friends' parents picked them up and I helped that Greek boy into the kitchen and helped him with the black eye on his face. After that happened, we became friends ever since, though he was five years younger than me, that didn't stop us. Now he lives in Boston, working as a homicide detective."

The last statement he said reminded me of Detective Jones who was Desiree's uncle.

"What was his name?" Des asked curiously.

"Parker Jones." Feo said.

"Oh my gods." Des exclaimed. "That's my uncle."

"Really? Well then, it's nice to meet another family member of his." Feo said smiling. "My little brother actually became best friends with his brother, Duane, in college. In fact they were roommate."

"That's my dad." Des exclaimed again.

My dad was best friends and roommates with Desiree's dad back in college. I thought to myself.

"What was the name of your little brother?" I asked curiously.

"Tony. Sadly I haven't seen my brother since our father's funeral sixteen years ago." Feo said sadly. "Wait I forgot to ask your name."

"My name is Romeo Valentino, son of Minerva and Tony Valentino." I said almost crying.

"You're my little brother's son? How old are you?" he asked me.

"Fifteen." I told him.

He stood up from his seat and hugged me. I actually hugged him back. The thought of having another family member related to my dad overjoyed me.

"I can't believe my brother had a son and he didn't even tell me." He said slightly crying.

"My dad never even mentioned you either." I told him.

Then my uncle started to frown. "That's actually understandable. He doesn't really want to remember his past."

"Why?" I asked remembering the times I asked my dad about our family and him never answering those questions.

"How about we talk about in the restaurant? It's already lunch time and you are probably hunger." My long lost uncle said.

"Wait what about me?" Oliver said sitting up.

"Don't worry goat boy." My uncle said. "I'll ask one of the bus boys to bring you some food. Just make sure you hide your feet and legs."

We went downstairs to the restaurant. The place was filled with people eating the delicious pizza. Most of the people eating were families and groups of friends. Every time we pass a table they always greet Feo or compliment him that the food taste even better than the last time they ate it. We sat at a booth which seems to be more isolated than the others. Seeing the booth reminded me about our attack back in Pennsylvania.

"This booth will prevent people from listening to our conversation." Uncle Feo said also ordering food for us and to bring some to Oliver in the apartment.

Then he said "Before I answer your question about why your dad doesn't talk about his past. Let me give you a little history about our family starting with your grandfather, Massimo Valentino. He used to be one of the best in combat during World War II and one of the youngest, though he was a little late in entering the army."

Then I was starting to imagine my grandfather back when he was younger during the war inside my head like a mini movie for my brain.

Uncle Feo continued. "He joined the army in 1944 when he was eighteen and he was the youngest in his unit. See, there were many unknown heroic stories the country doesn't know about. One of those stories was about your grandfather. He was assigned to an assault mission to destroy an Axis base, which was secretly creating bombs to use against the Allied forces. Now, the base wasn't exactly guarded because it's not supposed to exist to us. But we found it anyway without the Axis knowing about it. So the commanding officer of the unit sent three of their best soldiers for the mission, twenty year old, Arnold Walberg, twenty-one year old Kevin Samuels and eighteen year old Massimo Valentino. The base was in a forest in the middle of nowhere in Romania. They used a small plane to fly into the air space of the country, barely able to keep it flying while being shot at. Kevin was the one who piloted the plane so as to not risk any other pilot. Then all three of them jumped off then plane and parachuted to the ground near the base."

"Wait how does this help me learn about my family either that my grandpa was awesome?" I asked.

"When you let me finish the story it will be relevant." Feo said. "As I was saying, when they got to the facility, there were barely any guards. The few they found were asleep and they shot them dead."

"Okay, I know those people were working for the Axis but that's just wrong." Desiree said.

"Think about it." My uncle said. "They were going to destroy the place full of explosives. If any of the bombs exploded the burning will hurt more and since they were already asleep it's like nothing happened really, just instant death. Going back to the story, they roamed all around the facility killing everyone they saw passing by. Then they finally got to the area where they were creating the explosives. All three of them were pretty good marksmen, so they shot all the workers just at the top railings without being notice. Then a really big guard, the size of a Minotaur, found them. He knocked out Kevin and shot Arnold on the leg. Your grandfather was swifter than the guard. He made the guard chase him around the railings. Though he was punched several times at the back, but he was able to escape the torment. The guard almost fell off the rails and he was still unbalance of the edge of the steel floor. So Massimo hanged from a pipe hanging above his head, lifted his body up, thrust his feet forward and kicked the guard of the rail. The guard fell on one of the finished bombs and accidentally activating it. The alarms went off and Massimo heard footsteps frantically running, getting outside the building. They only had thirty minutes to leave before the bomb exploded. He slung Kevin on his shoulders and helped Arnold stand up. He asked Arnold to help him with Kevin."

"But Arnold's leg got shot. How did he help carry Kevin?" I asked.

Then Uncle Feo answered. "Well at first he didn't like it but they had no choice. Kevin was pretty knocked out. Arnold was technically limping and leaning on Kevin while carrying him. Massimo was trying to carry both weights because when Arnold starts leaning unto Kevin, the weight of both bodies was felt on Massimo's shoulders. They escaped back to the route they took getting in and kept walking until they saw a helicopter which was in a safe distance from the facility."

"There were helicopters in the forties?" Des asked.

"There were but just early models." Said Feo. "Continuing on, they were just a couple of meters away when the base exploded causing all three of them to fall to the ground from the shock wave. Massimo didn't want to give up so he stood back up, helped Arnold stand up and both of them carried Kevin who was still incapacitated. Then they finally reached the helicopter. They put Kevin in first, then Arnold and last was Massimo. When they came back to their base, medics came to get Kevin who was still unconscious, and Arnold. Massimo tried to stand up but couldn't. Another set of medics came and got him. In the infirmary, he was lying on his stomach. A nurse came in and told him his back was badly bruised from being punched on the back multiple times. The shock wave made it worst causing him to have partial paralysis on his legs. So after a few weeks in the infirmary, he was relieved and was ordered to go back home. It took him six years to heal and to start walking again."

"Was grandpa a demigod?" I asked.

"No. He was a hundred percent mortal." He answered me. "Continuing with the story, he was getting bored just staying in the house, so he decided on creating this exact restaurant. His parent didn't mind the idea and lent him the money. He found this building on the opposite side of the city where he lived. The money his parent gave him was enough to purchase the building. He worked night and day, asking friends from the neighborhood to help him with the restaurant. By the start of the summer, he had his grand opening and it was an instant hit. Since he was so caught up with the restaurant he never thought about dating. Then the year before I was born he met Bellona."

"How come she didn't meet him earlier? I mean he was a war hero and she would have met him sooner." Des asked.

"She was actually waiting for him to heal and also waited for the business to grow." My uncle answered. "So anyway, they started dating and the year after that I was brought to my dad's footsteps."

"Just like me." I said. "But did he know that she was a goddess?"

"My father did know and just rolled with it." He said. "Then when I was three he started dating my mortal stepmother Elise Russo. They got married two years later and then your father was born. Your father and I helped around the restaurant. Then when I was twelve and he was seven, our mother died from heart failure. Then when I turned thirteen I was sent to camp, which upset him even more because he couldn't come. I came back home every start of school and I noticed that he was becoming very distant from me and my father. When I graduated college at camp, I came back and worked at restaurant. Your dad was already a senior in high school. There was one time that Tony and dad were arguing about where Tony wanted to go to college. Dad wanted him to go the University of Chicago but Tony wanted to go the Harvard. Actually he was already accepted at Harvard and dad got even mad. That's when he started ignoring both dad and I. The day after his graduation, he just left and never came back again. The last time I saw him was six years after, when dad died. He was at the funeral and when I talked to him he wasn't ignoring me anymore but he was still reserved and private about those six years I haven't seen him. He was still in school, studying law. He said after the funeral he was leaving to meet his girlfriend, Miala, in Chinle. Then I never saw him again." The he asked me sadly. "That wasn't Minerva was it?"

"No it wasn't. But for what it's worth, I think dad never forgot about both you and grandpa." I said trying to cheer him up. "Ever since I was five years old, both of us always celebrated my birthday at the Boston branch of Marcelli's."

"Really?" he asked smiling.

"Yeah. Every year." I told him.

He grinned wider and I also smiled.

"I have a question." Desiree said to my uncle. "Why did your dad name it Marcelli's?"

"When dad was deciding the menu choices, he decided to use recipes from his grandfather back from the old country and my great-grandfather's name was Marcelli." Feo said. "Romeo I really have to ask how your father is doing. I really do miss him."

I started playing with my napkin. I was starting to like my uncle and I don't want him to become upset that dad was kidnapped by a monster. He didn't deserve that information. He never knew anything about dad for the past sixteen year and to find out that a monster forcefully took his younger brother. It will break his heart.

"Maybe we should get back to the apartment." Desiree said. "So we can check on Oliver and talk some more."

We got out of the booth and made our way back to the apartment. We went to the living room and talked.

"Did anything happen with Tony?" Uncle Feo asked concerned.

I was still quiet. I really did not want to talk about it. It's just not right telling him.

"Romeo you need to tell him. He needs to know." Des told me.

I breathed in deeply and I sat straight in my chair and told my uncle what happen.

"You're going to be really upset when I tell you this." I started. "But dad was kidnapped by a monster."

To prevent him from bursting out, I gave him the letter my dad gave me.

"Here read this." I told him. "It explains everything. Well most of them."

He was reading it frantically with his eyes. Then he gave me back the letter and sighed. I didn't know what was going on in his head right now. I couldn't tell his emotions either.

"This is actually the reason why we're on a quest." Des told my uncle. "We are suppose to bring back her medallion and hope that she gives us back Romeo's dad."

"How will you find it?" asked my uncle. "It's lost in a canyon."

"I know a girl named Hazel Lévesque." I said. "She's the daughter of Pluto and she can control metals from the earth."

"A daughter of Pluto." He said shocked. "I thought the big three had an oath to not have children anymore after the war."

Then Desiree spoke. "I'm not sure if you've heard this but a couple of years ago there was a second titan war. I've only heard stories at my camp. I'll just skip to the ending. After the titans were defeated again, by a demigod named Percy Jackson, the gods offered him immortality but he refused the offer. Instead, he asked that all the gods will recognize all their children and he also relieved the big three of their oath."

"This boy removed their oath?" my uncle asked. "Just because he rescued Olympus."

"Not only did he rescue Olympus, he also defeated Kronos himself." She concluded.

I've only met Percy once at Camp Half-Blood. He was a really cool guy, also a like goofy and the camp seems to know him as their leader. I knew that he was strong enough to fight a god but a titan is like epic. I have found a new respect for the guy.

"So this Hazel will help you find this medallion?" he asked me.

"Yes." I said firmly.

"And how do you expect to go from California and Arizona with enough time to search for it?" he asked me again.

"She was a really fast horse." I told him. "His name is Arion and it was a son of Neptune. Trust me, this horse is insanely fast. I rode him once just to time how fast he could run the whole circumference of the camp. I got sick after that ride and had to puke out my lunch. But he ran in less than a second."

"Wow, that horse is fast." Des exclaimed.

"Well I go to do a few errands." Feo told us. "Just stay here until I get back, got it."

"We got it." I said.